News

February 7, 2023

Cecilia Secaira (MEd '23) Displays Rhizomatic Cloud Sculpture, "inter/liminal lingering"

Author: Emily Herbein

Cecilia Secaira (MEd '23) works as a graduate assistant and peer advisor in Tyler's Art Education program. With a varied background across several fine arts disciplines ranging from ceramics to textiles, Secaira says her time at Tyler has opened her eyes to her love of art education. Through her practice, which settled in the crafts space, she uses making as a form of self-discovery, research, and communication. Her latest work, "inter/liminal lingering," is a rhizomatic cloud sculpture that employs a/r/tography research techniques and critical thinking skills, all while encouraging viewer engagement and self-relfection. Below, Secaira reflects on her practice and work ethic. Read More

November 30, 2022

The Art of Student Teaching Encourages Confidence and Creativity

Author: Emily Herbein

Assistant Professor and Program Head of Art Education Renee Jackson, PhD, delves into this year’s The Art of Student Teaching exhibition, on view this month from November 30-December 4. Last year, the department celebrated 30 years of student teaching shows, originally created by Art Education Professor Emeritus Jo-Anna J. Moore.   Read More

October 11, 2022

MEd Alum Critiques Public Education Through Art

Author: Emily Herbein

Tyler alum Mike Smaczylo (MEd '20), a teacher at Kensington Health Sciences Academy, was recently profiled by The Philadelphia Inquirer about his exhibition Reimagining Monoliths, which explores his vision of Philadelphia through 10 silk-screened posters, currently at the Da Vinci Art Alliance. Smaczylo calls his work "a testament to the disinvestment in public schools," writes Kristen Graham, and features McClure Elementary in Hunting Park, Tilden Middle School in Southwest Philadelphia, and Ellen Elementary in Germantown.  Read More

April 5, 2022

Art Therapy's Hope Springs Installation Spreads Joy Across All Programs

Author: Emily Herbein

Art Therapy major Kianna Cooper (BA ’22) unwinds a length of black thread, snips it and knots an end around a colorful, twisted wire-and-glass bead object. Then she eases up a ladder and loops the other end around the exposed coil innards of a full-size mattress. Cooper is adding final tendrils to a mobile-like installation title Hope Springs, conceived by Graduate Assistant and Peer Art Education Advisor Ali Ruffner (MEd ‘22) and executed with Art Therapy Program Head and AECAP Department Chair Dr. Lisa Kay as a project to uplift Tyler students, faculty and staff alike as they returned to in-person learning last fall from the imposed separation of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Read More

October 22, 2021

Lisa Kay Shares Trauma-Informed Art Education Approaches for Teachers

Author: Carin Whitney

How can art teachers help children and adolescents cope with stress and anxiety from traumatic experiences, and what techniques can provide resilience to both students and teachers?Lisa Kay, Associate Professor of Art Education and Art Therapy, notes that while art teachers are not therapists, they are in a position to help children cope with adversity and trauma. Kay works at the intersection of art education and art therapy, specifically with resilience and artmaking with adolescents who have experienced trauma. Kay and co-author Donalyn Heise recently shared their research in the National Art Education Association’s publication, Translations. Read More

November 11, 2020

Faculty Renee Jackson honored by PAEA as Outstanding Art Educator

Author: Zachary Vickers

Renee Jackson, assistant professor and program head of Art Education, is the recipient of the 2020 Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA) Outstanding Higher Education Art Educator Award at the PAEA Conference (October 16–17, 2020) for her research and teaching related to social justice art education and the integration of game-design and game-play as collaborative art forms and learning tools. Read More

Pages